Box Score

Northern Michigan 77, Parkside 74
Parkside's season opener came down to the wire, with a potential-tying Alyssa Nelson three at the buzzer missing off the front rim. It was a back-and-forth affair that was eventually put away by four straight free throws from Northern Michigan's Makaylee Kuhn, who had 18 on the night. The contest was the first that the women's team have hosted since their win in last year's GLIAC Quarterfinal against Northern Michigan.
 
DOWN THE STRETCH
As the buzzer for the end of the third quarter rang, the Rangers found themselves down 61-52. After failing to cut the lead in the first four minutes in the fourth quarter, a three from freshman Kayla Bohr sparked an 18-8 run that tied the contest at 73-73 with :30-seconds to go. As mentioned earlier, four of Northern Michigan's 10 made free throws iced the game.
 
HEAR FROM COACH CONELY
 
STATWORTHY
The Green & White saw a balanced scoring effort led by sophomore Maja Leidefors. It was Leidefors first game as a Ranger, and she registered 13 points and three rebounds. Parkside had four others in double digits, with the trio of Claire Jakaitis, Hannah Plockelman, and Alyssa Nelson each scoring 12, and Maddy Harrison scoring 11. Nelson and Plockelman led the team with seven rebounds apiece. The visiting Wildcats were led by Ana Rhude who finished with 20 points.
 
A place the Rangers will have to shore up before tomorrow's contest is rebounding. Northern Michigan outrebounded the hosts 44-27, including 16 offensive rebounds. Parkside shot 24-of-58 (41.4-percent) from the field, 9-of-28 (32.1-percent) from three and 17-of-22 (77.3-percent) from the line. Meanwhile the Wildcats shot 31-of-62 (50.0-percent) from the field, 5-of-12 (41.7-percent) from three, and 10-of-16 (62.5-percent) from the line.
 
WHAT'S NEXT
The Rangers will have a chance to avenge their season-opening loss as they host the Wildcats again tomorrow at 5 p.m. Next weekend, the team will hit the road for the first time this year as they travel to Ferris State for a doubleheader with game one scheduled for Friday, Jan. 15 at 2 p.m. and game two scheduled for Saturday, Jan. 16 at 2 p.m.